Title: A Doll's House Author: Henrik Ibsen Date of Publication: December 21st, 1879 Literary Period: Victorian Genre: modern prose drama, realistic Describe the setting and then explain the relevance of the setting.
The events of "A Doll's House" take place with a typical home of 1870s, a breeding ground for social reform on the issue of gender inequality. Themes (These statements should be complete sentences and completely developed ideas) The central theme of Ibsen's "A Doll's House" is the role of a woman not only in the household, but in society in general. Perception in society and the fortitude of the home are also recurrent themes in "A Doll's House." Nora comes to place her value in herself as an individual, free-thinking woman instead of merely a pretty housewife and mother. Nora learns how unstable and loosely held together her house and marriage are, so she makes the decision to leave until Torvald is ready to face reality and mend the shaky union. Plot Summary (Please do not copy and paste. Simply list the high points of the novel) - Consider creating a visual flow chart or graph and posting it here.
Torvald gets a promotion. Nora sees this as more spending money for herself.
Krogstad finds out that he's losing his job to Mrs. Linde
Nora panics and unsuccessfully attempts to convince Torvald to let Krogstad keep his job
Nora pleads on behalf of Krogstad, but to no avail
Nora's second attempt angers Torvald, pushing him to immediately fire off Krogstad's termination letter
A desperate Nora uses her feminine charm on Dr. Rank for help with her debt.
Dr. Rank confesses his love for Nora after exposing his rapidly deteriorating health, making her feel guilty. She dismisses the thought of asking him for help with her loan
Nora asks Torvald for guidance in the tarantella and manages to deter him for reading Krogstad's letter for the day
Mrs. Linde and Krogstad, former lovers, meet while Nora and Torvald are dancing. She convinces him to let Torvald read the letter.
Nora and Torvald, who is feeling rather frisky, return from the dance
Dr. Rank, being the perpetual third-wheel in Nora and Torvald's marriage, drunkly saunters into the Helmer household and cockblocks Torvald yet again.with grim details of his impending demise
Torvald reads the letters and is beside himself with rage. He denounces Nora for what she has done to him
Torvald reverts to his old, overly-doting self when Krogstad sends another note revoking the debt
However, Nora is now disillusioned to the state of her marriage to Torvald. She decides to desert him and their three children.
Memorable Quotes and their SIGNIFICANCE.
"Something glorious is going to happen."
Oh Nora. At this point, she is still totally convinced that Torvald is indeed her knight in shining armor. A knight who would defend her from anyone, even her own self.
"How warm and cosy our home is, Nora. Here is shelter for you; here I will protect you like a hunted dove that I have saved from a hawk's claws."
Well this is incredibly ironic. Wasn't Torvald denouncing Nora a minute ago, threatening to erase her from his life and the lives of their three children in a desperate bid to salvage his own reputation? But of course he didn't mean it.
"Our home has been nothing but a playroom. I have been your doll-wife."
I'm glad she explicitly states it, for anyone who may have dozed off during the play and failed to catch that. Nora is finally done playing and getting played with; she's ready to exercise her freedoms as an individual.
'My sons are growing up; for their sake I must try and win back as much respect as I can in the town. This post in the Bank was like the first step up for me--and now your husband is going to kick me downstairs again into the mud."
Respect is very, very important to Krogstad. Ironically, he more than willingly implements disreputable methods to get his status back. His drive to gain a positive reputation reflects the mindset of a typical male living in the Victorian Period
Describe the significance of the opening scene. The opening scene of Ibsen's "A Doll's House", in which Torvald discusses his promotion with Nora, allows Ibsen's audience to catch its first glimpse of Torvald's patronizing nature towards his wife. The air of mirth that pervades the Helmer household is a polar contrast of the household's atmosphere in the closing scene. Describe the significance of the closing scene.
Now that she has seen Torvald's nature, Nora can no longer delude herself with her and Torvald's idealized perception of their marriage. Nora has finally come to see what her demeaning behavior and allowing men like her father and Torvald to subordinate her make her: a plaything. She exits the Helmer household with a decisive slam of the door, confident that she will find herself as an individual or bear the consequences alone. Describe the author's style and provide examples from the text.
Ibsen's contrast of reality and idealized romanticism becomes the signature element of "A Doll's House"; it places emphasis on the erosion of Nora's marriage and the unity of the Helmer household. I felt very uncomfortable when Torvald began revealing his weird fantasies. Contrarily, Nora's acceptance of reality and the gravity of her decisions as Torvald's plaything towards the end of "A Doll's House" made me despise her a little less. List importance characters and their significance.
Nora Helmer: feminine protagonist of "A Doll's House"
Torvald Helmer: Nora's husband, who both dotes on and supresses Nora. His priorities, money and status, are revealed towards the end of "A Doll's House"
Dr. Rank: An endeared friend of Nora's and Torvald's. Ironic how Nora, the floozy that she was, sought to manipulate the one man who showed her geniune love and affection
Krogstad: I honestly don't understand why everyone likes to make him out to be the bad guy. I think what he did helped Nora's "marriage" more than it hurt it and was a completely justified step towards rebuilding his career and reputation
Mrs. Linde: An old friend of Nora's who seems to know Nora better than Nora knows herself. Moreover, her insight into Nora's union with Torvald drastically affects how the events of "A Doll's House" play out; she knew better than to let Nora continue to deceive herself and Torvald
Ann Marie: sacrifices time with her family to be capable of supporting them. The consequences of Ann Marie's sacrifice drastically differ from those of Nora's, a member of the upper class.
Author: Henrik Ibsen
Date of Publication: December 21st, 1879
Literary Period: Victorian
Genre: modern prose drama, realistic
Describe the setting and then explain the relevance of the setting.
The events of "A Doll's House" take place with a typical home of 1870s, a breeding ground for social reform on the issue of gender inequality.
Themes (These statements should be complete sentences and completely developed ideas)
The central theme of Ibsen's "A Doll's House" is the role of a woman not only in the household, but in society in general. Perception in society and the fortitude of the home are also recurrent themes in "A Doll's House." Nora comes to place her value in herself as an individual, free-thinking woman instead of merely a pretty housewife and mother. Nora learns how unstable and loosely held together her house and marriage are, so she makes the decision to leave until Torvald is ready to face reality and mend the shaky union.
Plot Summary (Please do not copy and paste. Simply list the high points of the novel) - Consider creating a visual flow chart or graph and posting it here.
Memorable Quotes and their SIGNIFICANCE.
Describe the significance of the opening scene.
The opening scene of Ibsen's "A Doll's House", in which Torvald discusses his promotion with Nora, allows Ibsen's audience to catch its first glimpse of Torvald's patronizing nature towards his wife. The air of mirth that pervades the Helmer household is a polar contrast of the household's atmosphere in the closing scene.
Describe the significance of the closing scene.
Now that she has seen Torvald's nature, Nora can no longer delude herself with her and Torvald's idealized perception of their marriage. Nora has finally come to see what her demeaning behavior and allowing men like her father and Torvald to subordinate her make her: a plaything. She exits the Helmer household with a decisive slam of the door, confident that she will find herself as an individual or bear the consequences alone.
Describe the author's style and provide examples from the text.
Ibsen's contrast of reality and idealized romanticism becomes the signature element of "A Doll's House"; it places emphasis on the erosion of Nora's marriage and the unity of the Helmer household. I felt very uncomfortable when Torvald began revealing his weird fantasies. Contrarily, Nora's acceptance of reality and the gravity of her decisions as Torvald's plaything towards the end of "A Doll's House" made me despise her a little less.
List importance characters and their significance.
Nora Helmer: feminine protagonist of "A Doll's House"
Torvald Helmer: Nora's husband, who both dotes on and supresses Nora. His priorities, money and status, are revealed towards the end of "A Doll's House"
Dr. Rank: An endeared friend of Nora's and Torvald's. Ironic how Nora, the floozy that she was, sought to manipulate the one man who showed her geniune love and affection
Krogstad: I honestly don't understand why everyone likes to make him out to be the bad guy. I think what he did helped Nora's "marriage" more than it hurt it and was a completely justified step towards rebuilding his career and reputation
Mrs. Linde: An old friend of Nora's who seems to know Nora better than Nora knows herself. Moreover, her insight into Nora's union with Torvald drastically affects how the events of "A Doll's House" play out; she knew better than to let Nora continue to deceive herself and Torvald
Ann Marie: sacrifices time with her family to be capable of supporting them. The consequences of Ann Marie's sacrifice drastically differ from those of Nora's, a member of the upper class.